Enesthihttps://enesthi.wordpress.com
A SciFi adventureFri, 06 Oct 2017 03:56:13 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.com/https://s2.wp.com/i/buttonw-com.pngEnesthihttps://enesthi.wordpress.com
11.4https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/10/05/11-4/
https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/10/05/11-4/#respondFri, 06 Oct 2017 03:56:05 +0000http://enesthi.wordpress.com/?p=3622Continue reading 11.4→]]>He slept hard that night and woke up late the next day, finding breakfast left for him just inside the door. There was also a note reminding him of his lunch appointment. He ate slowly, staring at the note. He hadn’t really met the matron of the house yet, and wasn’t looking forward to it either.

He couldn’t remember getting in bed the previous night, he’d been tired and out-of-sorts from the impromptu conversation with the doctor. She had been very drunk, but he could remember how energetic her brother had been after drinking. He found some more casual clothing in the closet and get dressed, trying to force his hair into a reasonable shape with his fingers. It was too short, and a scar on the side of his head that normally wasn’t visible stood out like a sore thumb. It would grow back though, eventually.

The hall was empty and quiet, though someone had swapped out a vase of flowers on a small table by a window. They smelled nice, if strong. He realized he was delaying again and headed for the library. This meeting would go quicker if he showed up on time.

The library was silent, except for the echo of the door shutting behind him. He could see a small table with two chairs and a bowl of fruit in the center. Nobody else was visibly and he could feel the hairs on his arms raising.

Jerret approached the table slowly, only stopping when he could see the fruits in the bowl were peaches. His heart beat erratically for a moment and if not for years of practice he would have jumped out of his skin when Sam’s mother spoke up from behind a bookshelf.

“You can have a seat, I don’t bite.” She had that same orderly voice the doctor usually used. He couldn’t help wondering if that was a facade as well as he sat in the chair farthest from her. “I appreciate you taking a moment of your time to speak with me.”

“I didn’t have much choice.” Is what he wanted to say. Instead he sat silently, watching her take a seat and pick up one of the peaches from the bowl.

“Sarah brought these in this morning, saying something about you wanting some. She couldn’t seem to remember anything else about last night besides that so she was very insistent. Feel free to have as many as you want, we have plenty more.”

“Thank you.” He took one out of the bowl, trying to keep a straight face. He managed for a brief moment, until he tried to take a bite and burst into a rough, coughing laugh. The woman waited patiently, grinning slightly, until he could regain control and dried his eyes.

“I thought that might amuse you. She really doesn’t remember what you spoke about. I suppose that’s the trade off for not being hungover the next morning.” She took a bite of a peach and nearly set him off again, though he managed to stay in control.

“We didn’t really speak about anything important.” He put the peach he was holding back down as it proved too much for him.

“On the contrary, I found it quite enlightening.”

He was glad he hadn’t tried to eat that peach as he could feel himself choke a little. He coughed instead and frowned at her.

“You’ve seen Elizabeth, right? She’s the one constantly quizzing Mr. Sutro about blueprints.” She took another bite, savoring it as she stared down at it, “She makes some fantastic devices for me. Last year she gave me some delightful little robot drones that look like songbirds. They transmit data to the house even, so I can keep an eye on the grounds. It’s helped keep track of things while Sarah looks for a new groundskeeper.”

Jerret remained silent, staring past her at the window uncomfortably.

“Oh that wall again. That won’t work on me, I’m an old lady with nothing but time on my hands.” She paused and gestured to a young girl who came in carrying a tray with some tea and food. The girl set it down carefully, curtsied, and hurried off, “So tell me about yourself.” She poured some tea for each of them and leaned back with her cup, taking a sip.

]]>https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/10/05/11-4/feed/0enesthi11.3https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/09/20/11-3/
https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/09/20/11-3/#respondWed, 20 Sep 2017 08:36:37 +0000http://enesthi.wordpress.com/?p=3515Continue reading 11.3→]]>Grass stirred in front of him as he found a large rock by the edge of a field to sit on. Despite the lack of a moon he could still see somewhat. Off on the horizon lights from what must have been a city flickered. Jerret pulled off the tie, stripping down to just pants and an undershirt. The breeze was refreshing. He stared at the distant city, not allowing himself to think until the smell of peaches distracted him.

The doctor was behind him, stumbling enough in the dark that he wasn’t sure how she’d gotten that close without him noticing. He glanced at the blinking monitor she’d stuck on him before. Of course it was a tracker too. He grimaced and waited until she was close enough to hear him, his mood already soured again.

“Were you concerned about me?”

The noises stopped, then started again as she walked toward him more confidently.

“I thought if you were going to make a run for it you might take the, uh, monitor off and it’d be best if I…” She stopped for a moment, a few feet away, “if I retrieved it since they’re rather expensive.”

“I wouldn’t think money would be a concern.”

“It’s not, but that doesn’t mean we have to be fri-bo-lus about it.” She sat down in the grass next to the rock and the heady smell of alcohol made his nose crinkle instinctively. She took a swig from a flask she was carrying and looked up at him with unsteady eyes.

The image of her carrying an honest old fashioned metal flask took long enough for him to comprehend that they sat in silence staring at each other in the dark.

“I’m not running, you can go to bed.”

“Ah don’t need to go to bed,” Her normally uptight speech had turned into a drawl and she leaned against the rock, getting uncomfortably close to him, “Ah don’t get to treat myself to the good stuff often and I’m not going to waste this on sleeping.”

“‘Ah’ think you’ve had enough, from the looks of it.”

She looked offended, then held the flask out toward him. Jerret shook his head and looked away again, “You don’t drink?”

“No.”

“Good on ya, it’s bad to get drunk.” She took another swig and exhaled loudly.

“Thanks, Doctor.” He gathered up his suit and stood up.

“Aw, ahm sorry, ahm not trying to ruin the mood.”

“Are you going to be able to find your way back alright?”

“Ahm not that drunk. We Mitchell’s can handle our drink right up until we black out.”

“You should get some rest.”

“Or we could talk?”

He pinched his nose and squatted down in front of her, trying to look her in the eye.

“Go back to the house, get some sleep before you embarrass yourself.”

“Ahm not gonna embarrass myself, you just don’t want to talk cause you hate me.”

“I don’t hate you, but you’re really drunk.”

“Uh-huh. So your heart rate monitor is just saying how ambivalent you are about me.”

“I’m not having this conversation with you, you won’t even remember it tomorrow.” He started toward the house again but hesitated as she struggled to her feet behind him.

“Ahm just trying to help!” She was wobbling pretty badly, and her voice cracked a little as she flapped her arms in emphasis, “Ah just want to help you. I don’t understand why you can’t see that.”

The last bit sounded more sober than she was, and he sighed, tilting his head up to where a moon should have been.

“If I agree to talk will you go back with me?”

She narrowed her eyes at him, but nodded.

“Can you at least tell me why you hate me more than anyone else here?”

Jerret looked back at her. She looked tired and thin, as if she’d been stretched out a little.

“I don’t hate you… I hate that-” He hesitated, “You have to walk with me or I’m not explaining.” He gestured her towards him and they started walking back, her trailing at arms length.

“Explain.” She insisted after a few minutes.

“Fine, I hate that you smell like peaches and are attractive in a million ways and I can’t do anything with that.” In his head he said a dozen prayers that she truly was as drunk as he thought.

She didn’t respond at first, walking behind him with her eyes downcast.

“Watch out for the bush there.” He pulled her along, willing the house to appear.

“What, like you don’t ever have sex.”

“There, we’re coming from the other side is there a door open on this side?”

“Wait, have you ever…?”

“Is this even the right wing? House is too damn big, it needs signs.”

“You said you would talk.” She pouted a little as he pulled her toward the building.

“There’s your brother, he’ll know what’s open.” He started towards Sam, who was standing on an outdoor patio next to a fountain.

Sarah stopped in her tracks, “You were supposed to talk, just answer me!”

Jerret turned on her, grabbed her shoulders, and shook her, hoping she would sober up, “I. Was. In. The. Fights.” She still looked confused as he stopped shaking her.

“What does that have to…”

“I was in the fights, I was still there when I became a man and do. not. want. to talk about it.” He let go of her and she stood there staring as if she’d been slapped, until realization crept across her face. It hurt to look at her expression as she understood what he meant so he turned back to the patio and started walking towards Sam.

“Oh Gods. Oh Gods I’m sorry I can’t believe how stupid I’m being I just…” She was following behind him still apologizing when they reached Sam, who gave them a curious look. Jerret tossed the removed clothing at him, which he caught easily, and shoved his sister towards him as she continued to apologize.

“She needs to go sleep it off. Is that door open?” He pointed at the nearest door.

“Yeah, I’ll take care of this mess.” He gestured to Sarah, who was rambling drunkenly next to him. Jerret nodded and hurried inside, finding himself in the dining room again. He found his way back to the other wing and his room and shut the door quickly. Inside the bathroom he turned on the warm water, sat heavily on the floor still dressed and buried his head in his knees.

]]>https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/09/20/11-3/feed/0enesthi11.2https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/09/07/11-2/
https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/09/07/11-2/#respondFri, 08 Sep 2017 02:13:33 +0000http://enesthi.wordpress.com/?p=3482Continue reading 11.2→]]>The food disappeared and the conversation began to die down a little. A few of the younger girls left the table, excusing themselves to the woman at the head of the table. None of them was as young as Jessie, as far as Jerret could tell.

“Aunt Sarah!” Jessie exclaimed, startling him out of his thoughts. He could smell peaches again as she approached and turned uncomfortably as the woman walked behind him to gather Jessie up in her arms.

“Oh you look so pretty in that dress dear, thank you for wearing it.” She straightened the skirt out a little. Her own hair had fallen out of it’s orderly bun somewhat, and Jessie started playing with the loose strands.

“I kept it neat too, I didn’t spill anything on it!”

Jerret turned back to his empty plate and drank some water, trying not to think about the smell.

“Well thank you for that, now why don’t you go with your dad and get ready for bed?” She handed Jessie over and Sam started towards the far door.

Jerret ventured a look and could see Jessie staring at him as she was carried away, her eyes drooping slightly.

“Mr. Jerret, was the dinner to your liking?”

She hadn’t walked away like he hoped, instead moving next to him. He forced a half-smile before turning to face her.

“Food was good.” It sounded stupid when he said it and he had to force himself not to look away again.

“I’m… glad to hear it.”

He could tell she was measuring her words. No part of his brain had come up with anything else to say as he heard his heart beating.

She shifted a little and looked toward the head of the table. Her mother was departing with the last of the girls. Only Calvin and the woman he was talking to showed no signs of leaving. “I’ve been asked to inform you mother requests you partake in tea with her tomorrow afternoon. If you are willing and have a preferred variety we are more than willing to provide.”

He tugged at the tie again, debating. “Do I have to wear the suit again?”

Her face contorted into what might have been surprise, before resetting to a cool professionalism. “Attire would be casual.”

“I suppose tea would be fine then.”

“Do you have a preferred variety?” There was a thinly veiled doubt in her eyes that bothered him.

“Any green tea would do, if that’s an option.”

“Of course. I’ll inform Mother. Good evening, Mr. Jerret.” She turned and hurried out of the room. Jerret couldn’t tell whether he had angered her somehow but as the smell of peaches faded he felt relieved. He nodded at Calvin and got up, leaving his dirty plate on the table with the others. He made his way past a group of girls who marked his passing with a round of whispers.

The library was no longer quiet, much to his dismay. A group of girls were clustered in off to one side apparently talking about the book they were passing around. He hurried through and back to the silence of the other wing. Going back to his room held no appeal at the moment so he ducked out a side door, into the clean evening air.

]]>https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/09/07/11-2/feed/0enesthi11.1https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/08/14/11-1/
https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/08/14/11-1/#respondMon, 14 Aug 2017 07:02:52 +0000http://enesthi.wordpress.com/?p=3443Continue reading 11.1→]]>It was the black haired girl from before that arrived to escort him to dinner. He tugged at the collar of his shirt, hoping it would stop feeling like a noose. He cleared his throat and tried to ignore his guide turning redder.

“You know Sarah doesn’t get out much, so she never really gets a chance to meet guys…” She blurted it out and then trailed off, still not making eye contact. Jerret grunted an acknowledgement, not trusting himself to say anything as they arrived at a large set of double doors in the main house. “Just saying… your seat is over by Sam and Jessie.” She gestured vaguely at an empty spot at the table and scurried away to another part of the table.

It took him several seconds to get past the ridiculous size of the table. Then his focus was on the rest of the dining hall. Girls and women of varying ages swarmed past him, setting places and moving food. They paid him no mind as he made his way to the other side of the table where Sam and Jessie were having an animated conversation. He sat down next to Jessie, who stared up at him silently for a moment. He looked around, wondering if he was in the wrong spot, but there was a card on the table with a name that looked like his and the other chairs nearby were full of girls.

“Jessie don’t stare.” Sam put a hand on her head and she winced, “She does that when I get a haircut too.”

“It looks weird!” She protested, pushing his hand off as he mussed her hair.

“Nonsense, he looks…” Sam trailed off and Jerret could almost hear gears grinding as he hunted for a word.

“Civilized?” He suggested, pulling at his tie automatically. Someone put a glass of water in front of him and disappeared again.

“I was not going to say that.” Sam frowned, “Fine, you look fine.”

“Uh-huh… how long do I have to wear this suit?”

Sam glanced around and loosened his tie a little, “Just till after dinner, then you can chuck it off a cliff for all anyone will care… not in front of the girls obviously.”

“Do you like my dress, Mr. Jerret?” Jessie stood up on her chair to show it off and Sam grabbed her waist quickly, pulling her down again.

“It’s… nice?” He looked to Sam for a cue but the man was distracted getting her feet on the floor again.

“I think it’s pretty but I don’t like wearing dresses because then I can’t run around or everyone gets mad cause they wrinkle or get dirty.” She made a face and straightened her skirt out.

Someone clinked a glass at the far end of the room and everything fell silent. Jerret followed their attentive gazes to a white-haired stately woman in a stern black dress seating herself at the far end of the table.

“Thank you all for humoring me again. I’d like to extend a welcome to our guests, Mr. Sutro, Mr. Jerret, and Ophelia. Please consider yourselves at home and enjoy the meal.”

Jessie’s father was looking around the table as food was passed down towards them. Jerret kept an eye on how much he took of each dish, trying to take a similar amount. Jessie was picking and choosing seemingly at random, everything piled on top of each other and any available sauce applied equally to all dishes.

There was a full place setting in front of him. It had been so long since he’d seen multiple forks Jerret struggled to remember which one to use. The ones on top were for dessert but… he looked around the table. Everyone was using different utensils, several people had elbows on the table and a few of the girls were reading books over their plates.

The one on the far left was the salad fork. It was coming back to him. He picked it up, then realized that everything was piled up together and no longer had a defined “salad” portion. Courses usually weren’t served all together like this, if he remembered correctly. Also salads are supposed to be cold. He picked up the other fork instead, reasoning it was closer to not a salad than a salad.

It was good food. Not fine cuisine, more like the food he’d eaten doing day labor and the boss fed them. Good and hearty, meant to keep you happy and working. Someone was passing beverages around. He passed on everything smelling of alcohol and stuck to what seemed to be fruit juice. He couldn’t tell what fruit it was meant to be, but it was refreshing.

He had mostly cleared his plate by the time desserts came around, and piled a few tasty looking pastries on the dessert plate. He glanced around the table, noting Calvin slowly eating while one of the women showed him something on a large sheet of paper. Nobody seemed to be following proper dining etiquette, even though they were all dressed up.

It was just a facade; he finally remembered the word he’d been looking for. All of this dressing up and the fancy settings and the giant table were just for show. He tugged at the collar and felt a hint of annoyance at having to wear the suit just for show. He piled some more desserts on his dinner plate as well. If nobody else cared he was going to enjoy it while it lasted.

Jessie had eaten half of the disaster on her plate and was reaching for a dessert before Sam lifted it out of her reach and passed it along.

“Finish your regular food, then you can have dessert.”

Jessie made a face at him but picked up her food again, shoveling a spoonful of gravy soaked vegetables into her mouth.

]]>https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/08/14/11-1/feed/0enesthi10.11https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/07/02/10-11/
https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/07/02/10-11/#respondMon, 03 Jul 2017 06:43:48 +0000http://enesthi.wordpress.com/?p=3419Continue reading 10.11→]]>The room felt smaller with her in it, and the bathroom doubly so as Sarah set up a chair in front of the mirror.

“There’s a suit that should also fit you for dinner, you’ll only have to wear it the one time but please try not to damage it. It’s in the closet.”

“Suit?” Jerret sat down and slumped in the chair. Sarah pulled him upright and the light on her wristband flashed.

“Sit up straight please.” She slipped gloves on both hands and rubbed them together, starting a gentle foam in her fingers.

Jerret shut his eyes as her hands touched his hair and thought about the book he had been reading. The sensation was distracting though, and the smell of peaches brought him back to the present suddenly. She’d pulled away, and the nervous look on her face relaxed a little.

“What?”

“Nothing, you were just” She put her hands in his hair again, “growling a little.”

“Sorry.”

In the silence that followed the sound of scissors cutting through his hair had him gripping the arms of the chair. Usually whoever was trying to civilize him just used a sturdy razor and removed most of it. Somehow having her carefully shape it one bit at a time was so much worse. The snipping stopped and the scratch of a comb against his scalp startled him.

“I’m nearly done so please try to sit still.”

His heart was beating fast again and he tried to slow his breathing as she stepped away from him. The smell of her persisted, as strong as ever and he cleared his throat, risking glance at her in the mirror. Their eyes met and she smiled just a little.

“Alright, that’s the worst of it. I’ll send someone to fetch you for dinner, so all you have to do is wear the suit in the closet until afterwards.” She backed up and opened the closet door, glancing in. “I’ll see you at dinner.”

“Ye-” He stood up and turned around. She was closer than he thought, and Jerret quickly looked away. “Yeah.”

She waved a little as she moved out into the hall, smiling and smelling of peaches still. As the smell faded he regained his focus and looked in the closet at the suit. It was probably the fanciest thing he’d worn since right after he’d been freed. He pulled the suit down and looked it over, trying to remember how the parts fit together. The tie had a clip at least, that was the part he’d never figured out how to do. Janet had always… he set the suit down carefully on the bed and headed out into the hall to walk and clear his head.

]]>https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/07/02/10-11/feed/0enesthi10.10https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/04/04/10-10/
https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/04/04/10-10/#respondTue, 04 Apr 2017 07:06:00 +0000http://enesthi.wordpress.com/?p=3362Continue reading 10.10→]]>Jessie could see Mr. Jerret sleeping on the window ledge below. It was her favorite spot during storms but he was a guest. She paced a bit on top of the bookcase, tail twitching. He was definitely asleep, he might not even notice her. She made her way down to the floor and jumped up on the small open spot by his knee. The rain thundered against the window, blurring everything outside. She pressed against the cold glass, curled her feet and tail underneath her body and started purring. A moment later the tranquility was interrupted by Mr. Jerret jerking awake and falling off the ledge to the floor.

“Hi… kiddo.” He set his book on the ledge, rubbing the back of his head with a wince.

“Mow.” She looked down at him on the floor and he smiled a little, looking out the window.

“I guess I fell asleep. Quite the storm out there.” He didn’t try to reclaim the ledge, leaving plenty of room for Jessie to stretch out. She sniffed at his book gently and he picked it up again, opening it, “So they don’t mind you shifting at home as much?”

Jessie flattened her ears and her tail twitched, thumping against the wall. Jerret frowned at the reaction.

“Or do they not really know? It’s a big house, I suppose there’s plenty of room to hide in.” He trailed off as Jessie hopped down from the window sill and darted around the corner.

She found the nearest stash of clothes and shifted, getting dressed quickly. Mr. Jerret was sitting on the window sill again, staring out at the rain when she returned.

“Granny knows I shift in the house, and Aunt Elizabeth and Aunt Rebecca. They make sure I have clothes so I can change back wherever.” She sat on the windowsill next to him as a flash of lightning light up his face briefly.

“What about the others?”

“Misa doesn’t like me to shift, and Aunt Sarah always says I’ll get stuck somewhere and suffocate. I don’t do it around them. Nobody else really cares but sometimes they tell on me.”

She didn’t really look at him but could feel his gaze shift briefly from the window to her, and then back. They sat in silence as the rain continued to batter the window. He picked up his book again and opened it, running one finger along the page as he read.

“What are you reading?”

His finger stopped moving as he looked at her, “It’s a book of poems I guess, it was the first thing to catch my eye.” He showed her the cover of two people sitting under a tree.

“Do you like it?”

“I don’t know, it helped I guess. I fell asleep reading it.”

Jessie twisted around and pressed her face against the window. The cool air and beating of the rain felt good against her cheek.

“Mr. Jerret?” He turned his head away from the window as spoke, “Have you ever gotten stuck somewhere when you shifted?”

He grimaced a little and pulled up the right sleeve on his shirt, showing a set of long scars, “I got stuck in a hole in a fence once, running from a farmer who thought I ate his chickens. I got loose but not before he shot me once.” He rolled his sleeve down again.

“Did you eat his chickens?”

“No… well I ate one later.”

“He gave you one? Was it because he felt bad?”

“Sure…” He set the book down on the windowsill, “He gave me one.”

“Where’d he shoot you?”

Jerret cleared his throat, “In the leg, but I can’t show you that one.”

“Oh… What about that one?” She pointed at the one by his shoulder that showed under his collar.

“That… that one was from someone with a bit of glass while I was asleep. I’m lucky they missed anything important.”

“Was it an accident?”

“Kind of, I think they’d had too much to drink.”

“Misa drinks too much sometimes, he just falls asleep though.”

“Yeah, I noticed…”

“Do you think Misa ever hurt someone on accident?”

Jerret looked out the window and didn’t say anything. Jessie kicked her feet out and leaned back against the window just as footsteps told them someone was approaching. Jessie could tell it was Aunt Sarah before she rounded the corner and spotted them. She always smelled a little like peaches. Mr. Jerret straightened up and frowned a little as she walked up to them.

“Everything alright up here? I got an alarm a little while ago.”

“Oh, I just got startled…” Mr. Jerret was very tense. Jessie looked from him to her aunt and frowned. Aunt Sarah was frowning at them.

“Anyways it’s time to get ready for dinner. You should go wash up and get dressed, Mr. Jerret will need to have his haircut finally.” She gestured towards the stairs and Jessie got to her feet reluctantly.

“I’ll see you at dinner, right Mr. Jerret?” She curtsied a little and he smiled.

“Sure, kiddo.”

With that she hurried past Aunt Sarah and downstairs. With any luck nobody had picked something out for her to wear and she could choose.

***

]]>https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/04/04/10-10/feed/0enesthi10.9https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/02/24/10-9/
https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/02/24/10-9/#respondSat, 25 Feb 2017 04:00:31 +0000http://enesthi.wordpress.com/?p=3294Continue reading 10.9→]]>After lunch Elizabeth quickly volunteered to take Mr. Sutro back to his room, practically hauling him out the door. Sarah started clearing the table, only to find Rebecca had vanished as well.

“Jessica, Sam, put your dishes in the kitchen. No running!” She scowled as the pair scurried into the kitchen and disappeared, leaving only Mr. Jerret at the table. She took his plate and stacked it with hers, ignoring the flashing on her wrist as she got close to him. He was still sitting there when she came back out, staring out the window with a grim look.

“Would you like to go outside for a bit?” She asked.

He twitched in his chair, eyes focusing on her instantly. For a moment she regretted the question, as his heart beat had risen again. It settled down after a moment of silence though and he half-grinned. “It looks like rain.”

Sarah walked over to the window and looked up at the ominous gray clouds, “So it does… Seems like a good day to enjoy a good book then. How about I give you a quick tour of the library?”

His grin faded and he seemed to stare through her for a moment, “That… would be nice I guess.” The grin returned but with visible effort this time.

“Come on then, I’ll give you a quick tour. We still have to get you a proper haircut for dinner but until then there’s free time.”

“There’s nothing wrong with my hair.” He grimaced but got out of his chair to follow as she headed for the hallway. She glanced back at him as they crossed the long hallway.

“Are you afraid of scissors?”

“No.” He frowned at her and she couldn’t help a sharp laugh.

“Then stop worrying about it, it’s just a haircut.”

“I’m not worrying…” He trailed off again as they entered the library, his gaze going upwards to the tops of the shelves.

“So we have it arranged by topic, the first floor is how-to and instructional books in the far corner…” She gestured towards the corner nearest the door to the other wing, “autobiographies, biographies, and history in general over there,” She gestured to the opposite corner, then to the shelves immediately in front of them, “And this half of the room is general fiction. The shelves are labeled with the genre. Upstairs is poetry, joke books, and other miscellaneous books that didn’t warrant an entire section. We also have a digital library you can access from a tablet we keep on the table there.” Sarah pointed to the table and chairs towards the center of the room.

He was still staring at the books, looking a bit lost.

“Do you have a certain type of book you like?”

“I… uh… um…” He looked at her and started gesturing with his hands uncertainly.

“What kind of book did you have on the ship?” She asked, hoping he’d know.

“It was a… a lot of things people said. Quotes.”

“Would you like to read another book like that? Or do you want a story or something educational?”

“A… it… I’m not very good at reading.” He finally admitted, deflating a little, “I mostly read that book because nothing’s too long or hard to read, and it’s mine.”

“Well…” Sarah waited a moment to see if more was forthcoming but he was frowning at the books now, “I’d recommend the poetry and miscellaneous section. There’s a lot of books there that shouldn’t be too difficult. Feel free to browse until you find something you like. I have to go see to some things but someone will find you when it’s time to get ready for dinner.” She gestured up to the stairs up to the second floor and he stared at them, brow furrowed. She put a hand on his shoulder and he jumped, his heart rate spiking again. Instead of saying anything else she shoved him towards the stairs and walked away towards the main house again.

The storm broke hard as she walked toward the front door and Sarah sighed, changing direction mid-stride. Trying to make it to town today would be a waste of time, nobody would be out in the foul weather for her to hire. Instead she headed downstairs to the cellar to take stock of the food supplies.

***

Her mother’s sudden appearance in the stairwell made Sarah finally look at the time and she grimaced, quickly putting the last few items in place with a quiet curse.

“I can’t believe I lost track of time. Did anyone start dinner?” Sarah started up the stairs but her mother but a hand out to stop her as they met at the top.

“It’s being seen to by the other girls, dear, slow down for a moment.”

“Which girls?”

“Sarah, it’s being seen to. I wanted to speak to you about our guests.”

She relaxed a little and followed her mother to a couple of chairs next to a window. The rain was still beating down hard. Her mother sat down and gestured to the other chair, which she sat down heavily in.

“Mr. Calvin is making good progress, he’s mostly gotten the hang of speaking again, even if it’s a bit slow still.”

“Yes, I hear Elizabeth has been taking advantage of that to pick his brain. did we get back the testing results yet?”

Sarah hesitated, trying to remember if she had checked this morning, “Not that I’ve seen but I’ll check again after dinner.”

Her mother held a hand up, “Don’t worry about it right now. I was just wondering. How about our other guest?”

“Mr. Jerret?” Sarah realized she was making a face when her mother chuckled, “There’s nothing wrong with him physically, he’s a bit malnourished but that’s not surprising. The only trouble we’ve had is the one panic attack and his discomfort around me.”

“I thought Sam said something about him not liking to be around women. This isn’t exactly the best situation for him.”

“Not all women… He had no reaction to Rebecca or Jessie or Elizabeth. So far it’s just been me.” She frowned out at the storm. Lightning flashed in the distance but there was no thunder.

“That is odd, but I wouldn’t take it personally dear.”

“I’m not taking it personally, it’s just problematic.” Sarah huffed a little and her mother smiled, putting a hand on hers.

“Why don’t you go make sure our guests are ready for supper, hmm? We’ll see how they handle a little more crowded situation.”

Sarah stood up and brushed herself off, “You’re sure the girls have things under control?”

“Go, it’s fine dear.” Her mother shooed her off towards the library as another flash of lightning light up the windows. This time thunder rumbled shortly after.

]]>https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/02/24/10-9/feed/0enesthi10.8https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/01/25/10-8/
https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/01/25/10-8/#respondThu, 26 Jan 2017 01:42:12 +0000http://enesthi.wordpress.com/?p=3218Continue reading 10.8→]]>Sarah was beginning to question the wisdom of letting Rebecca come with her as the girl hid slightly behind her walking down the hall. She’d promised though, and Mr. Jerret had been mostly well-behaved so far. She could hear grumbling from inside and knocked on the door softly. The grumbling stopped and after a moments silence she knocked again.

“It doesn’t lock.” It sounded like he was in the bathroom.

She forced herself into a cheery smile before opening the door, “Good afternoon, Mr. Jerret. We’ve come to see if you’ll be joining us for lunch.”

She could see he’d attempted shaving before he even turned around. He’d done a rough job of it and clearly nicked himself several times but it was an effort. A couple nasty looking scars along the side of his face now stood out more prominently and she forced herself not to look at them directly.

“Not used to sharp razors.” He mumbled, wiping his hand across one of the nicks. He glanced at his hand as she moved closer.

“I suppose that wouldn’t be something you’d usually have access too. Did you try using the foam?”

“The what?” He moved to the side quickly as she reached for one of the drawers and she tried to ignore the flashing on her wrist. She pulled out a bottle and shook it, dispensing a bead of foam on her hand.

“This stuff, it makes your hair stand straight so it cuts easier.” Sarah wiped her hand off and backed away again to let him out of the bathroom.

“I do fine without it.”

“You are still what I would describe as scruffy, but I suppose it’s fine for lunch. This is my younger sister Rebecca, by the way.” She gestured to the girl to come in out of the hallway as Jerret frowned at her. “She assisted me with lunch today and will be joining us, along with Sam, Jessica, Mr. Sutro and Elizabeth.”

“Well you’ve kept up your end so shall we head to lunch?” She gestured to the door and Jerret grunted a little.

“Ladies first.” He gestured back at her and she could see a hint of a sarcastic smirk. As much as it annoyed her it was a good sign so she let it slide, guiding Rebecca back out into the hallway to lead. Mr. Jerret followed at a short distance, and she could hear his footsteps occasionally falter and start up again. She glanced back at the door to the library just as he was looking away from a painting on the wall. He met her gaze and caught up quickly.

The library stopped him cold again and Sarah stopped after a few steps as he stood in the doorway, looking around.

“Are you alright, Mr. Jerret?”

He stopped staring at the shelves and cleared his throat, scratching at his chin, “‘s a big room. Lots of books.”

“Well yes, that’s what libraries tend to be… did you not notice as you came in?”

“Came in the back way.” The man’s brow furrowed a little and she turned to Rebecca, who was staring at her feet nearby, trying to be invisible.

“Go on ahead and get the table ready, alright?” Sarah said, shooing her away. Rebecca nodded quickly and scurried off towards the kitchen, “I’m sorry, I forgot Sam brought you in the back way. If you’d like you can have a quick tour after lunch, and you’re welcome to read anything you like.”

Jerret frowned up at the tall shelves, “That’s… um, thanks.”

“Let’s hurry on for now though, lunch is waiting.” She gestured behind her towards the kitchen and started walking backwards. He pulled his eyes away from the books reluctantly and followed her, head down, towards the rest of the house.

When they joined the others Rebecca was serving everyone and quickly placed plates for them. Sarah took her place at the head of the table and Jerret took one of the two remaining chairs, placing himself between Calvin and Sam and opposite Sarah. Rebecca finished serving and sat between Sarah and Jessie, casting a nervous glance across the table.

“Work off the table Elizabeth.” Sarah frowned as Elizabeth hurriedly removed the plans she’d been explaining to Calvin in hushed tones and stuck them under the table. Jessie and Sam were making faces at each other but stopped and focused on eating once she turned her frown on them. “Alright everyone eat while you socialize. I won’t have you all sitting here all day while your food gets cold.”

Sam and Jessie continued to eat with only the occasional giggle or hushed joke between them. Rebecca alternated between eating and glancing at Mr. Jerret, who ate slowly and silently. Elizabeth continued to dominate Mr. Sutro’s attention, although he occasionally glanced nervously at Mr. Jerret when the conversation lulled.

The pasta was a bit salty this time, and Sarah made a note to check the herbs and see if they’d gone stale. When she looked up again Jessie had climbed into Sam’s lap and was speaking to him and Mr. Jerret in turns. Her plate was empty so Sarah resisted correcting her behavior, instead attempting to listen to the conversation quietly.

“Misa always looks funny without a beard too. You have more scars than him though. He’s just got one behind his ear on his head.” She paused while Sam managed to take a bite of food over her head, looking up a little to watch him. Jerret was grinning a little between bites and nodding slightly, “Misa had to cut his hair too cause Granny says he looks unexpectable.”

“Unrespectable, Jess, and that’s a bit too much sharing.”

“Yeah that… but it’s important Misa! And I don’t get why Granny wants my hair long but not yours. It’s hard having long hair, it takes forever to get the tangles out and it pulls on my head.”

“You’re grandmother has her own ideas of what’s appropriate and when we’re home we follow her rules, remember?”

“Yeah but… Are you gonna hafta cut your hair, Mr. Jerret?” Jessie leaned over to ask him and he swallowed, coughing a little.

She hesitated for a moment, gathering her thoughts, “You didn’t mean it in a rude way, but it could be considered rude.”

“If I didn’t mean it rude it shouldn’t count.” Jessie sulked a little, sliding out of Sam’s lap and climbing back into her own chair. Sarah noticed Mr. Jerret frowning as he watched her move, but he noticed her gaze and quickly went back to eating.

]]>https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/01/25/10-8/feed/0enesthi10.7https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/01/19/10-7/
https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/01/19/10-7/#respondThu, 19 Jan 2017 07:17:33 +0000http://enesthi.wordpress.com/?p=3146Continue reading 10.7→]]>The next morning Sarah forced Sam to sit down and eat breakfast while she went to feed her patients. Mr. Sutro smiled meekly and accepted his food, managing an ‘ank you’.

“Oh, you’re getting the hang of Y’s again, wonderful. We’ll have you join us for lunch again so you can get more practice.” She left him eating and made her way back down to the first floor. Mr. Jerret would hopefully be rested from last nights incident. She knocked on the door and it opened a moment later. “Breakfast for you.”

He took the food with one hand but stayed in the doorway, frowning at her. She tried smiling at him but he just looked away.

“May I speak to you for a moment?” She pointed past him, “Inside?”

He huffed and for a moment she thought he might slam the door in her face, but instead he stepped back and set his food on the stand by the bed, “It’s your house.”

“Technically this wing is a clinic, not a house.” She sat down in the chair by the window and he found a spot on the bed and started eating. “That’s not important though. We have some things to discuss, doctor to patient.”

“I don’t need a doctor.” The man grumbled between mouthfuls.

“Three twenty-five in the morning I get an alert that one of my patients is breathing erratically and his heart rate is ramping up.”

“Just a bad dream.”

“Do you frequently get panic attacks after bad dreams?”

He had finished eating already and pushed the plate aside.

“What do you want?”

She forced herself to keep smiling despite the hostility, “I want to help you.”

“I think you people have ‘helped’ quite enough already.”

“‘You people’ now? What is it you think we’re doing here?”

“Abducting me from my nice peaceful solitude to ask me questions I can’t answer and play at ‘saving’ me.”

Sarah waited a moment for him to take a deep breath and calm himself again, “Sam wants answers, I want you to be able to speak to me without your heart rate spiking.”

“I don’t-” He cut himself off as she gestured to one of the bands on her arm, which was flashing infrequently, “That’s just because you’re annoying me.”

“Uh-huh, sure. You’re joining us for lunch today. Socializing will do you good too.”

“I’d rather not.” He glowered at her.

“I expect you to shave as well. I’m assuming you know how, there’s supplies in one of the drawers in the bathroom.”

“I don’t want to shave.”

“You do want to eat lunch though. No more hiding in this room like a recluse. We can forego a haircut until this afternoon.”

“I don’t want a haircut either.”

“Look, if you want me to leave you alone prove you’re fine. Get through a few meals without any issues and I’ll consider you cleared. Then we can move you to the regular house and Sam can ask you his questions and move on. It’s win-win.”

“Hold on, move me to the regular house?”

“Well yes, if you’re fine we have plenty of rooms in the other wing. Only patients stay over here. The other girls have been dying to meet you and Mr. Sutro after all. We don’t get many strangers at the house.”

Jerret frowned deeper than usual, his brow furrowing. Sarah watched him ponder for what felt like an eternity. “So either I’m fine and surrounded by more people and more questions, or I’m not fine and you hound me all the time.”

“I wouldn’t say I’m hounding you, just trying to do my best to help my patient progress.” Sarah wasn’t sure whether to be offended at his statement or not.

“Is the cell still an option?”

This time she was definitely a little offended. Sarah stood up and brushed herself off dramatically, “Lunch will be served in a few hours. Someone will come to fetch a newly shaved you, or you can stay here and wait for dinner. It’s your decision, Mr. Jerret.” She turned stiffly and left without waiting for a reply. In the cool air of the hallway her annoyance faded quickly and she almost went back inside to apologize, barely stopping herself. She had to make lunch, and he’d have to make a decision either way.

She spotted some black hair vanishing behind a bookshelf as she entered the library and snuck around the other side to catch Rebecca burying her face in a book. “And what are you doing over here? You’re supposed to be helping with the laundry today.”

“It’s already done, I was just reading this book…” The teen actually looked at the book she was reading and dropped it immediately, turning red.

Sarah walked over and picked up the book on figure drawing and put it back on the shelf, “Next time don’t pick your lies from the art section. Were you trying to peek on our guests?”

“No, I was just curious and…” Rebecca lapsed into silence, pushing her glasses up her nose.

“Well if you want to meet Mr. Sutro you can join us for lunch, though I think Elizabeth will be bogarting his attention.” Sarah frowned as Rebecca somehow turned redder, “Oh gods grant me patience you silly child. This is not a romance novel. Dark mysterious strangers are not charming, they’re dangerous…”

“I know that, I just wanted to meet him once…” Her sister’s complexion was returning to it’s normal paleness and she crossed her arms. Sarah sighed and mussed her sister’s hair.

“Don’t tell anyone but Mr. Jerret may be joining us for lunch as well. I’m trying not to overwhelm our guests so we can’t have everyone popping in.”

“Oh! That’s… that’s good to know.” She looked more excited than she sounded.

“I only said might, but if you help me with lunch I suppose you can come with me to fetch him.”

“You’re going to be disappointed though, he’s about as charming as a wet cat.”

“That’s not why I-I’m just curious.” She stomped a little and Sarah laughed sharply.

“Sure, sure. Now come help me get lunch started.” She pulled her sister along towards the kitchen.

]]>https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/01/19/10-7/feed/0enesthi10.6https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/01/15/10-6/
https://enesthi.wordpress.com/2017/01/15/10-6/#respondMon, 16 Jan 2017 06:40:00 +0000http://enesthi.wordpress.com/?p=3102Continue reading 10.6→]]>Jerret woke up in the middle of the night, gasping for breath. His lungs felt as if they were on fire as he bolted upright, sweating. He struggled out of bed and to the bathroom, splashing cold water on his face. It helped a little but it still felt like he couldn’t breath.

He turned on the cold water in the shower and sat on the floor by the drain, not even bothering to undress. If he could just calm down everything would be fine but the dream hadn’t faded yet.

Someone knocked on the door back in the room and his chest started to hurt. “Mr. Jerret? I got an alarm from your monitor, I need to make sure you’re okay.”

He swallowed, trying to catch his breath enough to tell her he was fine and to go away. He could hear the door open while he was still gasping a little.

“I apologize for bothering you, but I have to have visual confirmation.” He could smell her a little, even under the water. She still smelled like peaches as she stood in the doorway, looking at him like he was an injured animal. He shut his eyes and forced himself to breathe slower, “Are you having a reaction to something? Can you breathe?” She took a step towards him and he shook his head, sliding back into the corner as his heart beat harder again.

“‘m fine.”

“Do you need something to help you calm down?” She looked down at one of the two bands on her wrist as it started flashing again, “I won’t force anything on you, I’m just trying to help.” She took a step towards him again and Jerret reached for a nearby packet of soap, throwing it at her in a panic. It missed her and smashed into the wall before falling into the sink.

“Get out!” He snapped at her, causing her to retreat to the other side of the doorway. Once she wasn’t in his line of sight he managed to pull himself together and calm his breathing. After a few deep breaths he stood up and shut off the water. She was still there, waiting, and he took his time attempting to dry off before leaving the bathroom.

“Better?” She asked as he sat down on the edge of the bed, still very wet.

“You can go now, I’ll be fine.” He grumbled, staring down at the floor.

“Does that happen often or is it a new problem?”

Jerret didn’t want to lay down or turn his back while she was here, so he said nothing and continued avoiding her gaze.

“That wasn’t an allergic reaction, and you don’t seem to have breathing problems normally. Makes me think it was a panic attack. Sedatives really can help with those.”

“You talk like your brother.” His heart had skipped a beat at the mention of sedatives but it hadn’t triggered the monitor again.

She huffed and moved directly in front of him. The smell of peaches grew stronger, “Sam was asleep, as is everyone else. I don’t need someone to protect me from you anyway.”

Jerret turned his head to try and look out the window but she moved with his gaze and he met her eyes accidentally.

“It’s late, and I’m tired so I’ll make you a deal. I won’t keep pressing this tonight as long as you can promise me I’m not going to get another alarm.”

“Won’t happen again.” Jerret could tell she wasn’t entirely convinced, “It was just a bad dream.”

The partial explanation seemed to satisfy her somewhat and she relaxed, walking to the hallway door and opening it. “Alright then, we’ll discuss this more later. Try to get some rest. Good night, Mr. Jerret.”

“Night.” He waited until she had shut the door to stand up again, digging around in the drawers for some dry clothing. The sheets were a little wet where he’d been sitting but it couldn’t be helped. He turned the lights off and lay down again, staring at the wall. The smell of peaches still lingered and it took him what felt like an eternity to fall asleep again.